Enhancing Nursing Education to Address LGBTQ+ Healthcare Needs: Perspectives from the Philippines

Abstract

Enhancing healthcare professionals’ education and training to effectively manage the healthcare needs of People Identifying as Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer, and other Sexual and Gender Minorities (LGBTQ+) is imperative. Recognizing the importance of mitigating LGBTQ+ health disparities, healthcare associations have affirmed their commitment to providing inclusive and culturally competent healthcare. However, despite these efforts, there is still a gap in LGBTQ+-specific teaching within nursing and other healthcare professionals’ schools, resulting in healthcare professionals being ill-equipped to meet the unique needs of LGBTQ+. To address this gap, we suggest integrating LGBTQ+ health content into healthcare training programs, focusing on the Philippine nursing curriculum. Drawing from various reports, including insights from discussions with the local LGBTQ+, the suggested topics include LGBTQ+ identities, sexual health, trans health, mental health, and social determinants of LGBTQ+ health. By fostering understanding and competence through education, equitable and inclusive healthcare practices for LGBTQ+ can be better cultivated, helping to ensure that the unique healthcare needs of LGBTQ+ are met effectively. Furthermore, it is necessary to share best practices for providing health services to LGBTQ+ people. Additionally, future studies can explore the median time allocated to LGBTQ+ teaching, the optimal number of teaching hours for LGBTQ+ content, and the specific contents of local nursing curricula that can better address their needs. By undertaking these steps, we can move toward effectively addressing the unique healthcare needs of LGBTQ+.